StarTrek ShipGirls: Heir to Legend
by sasahara17
Summary: In a universe where ships have anthropomorphic personifications, the USS Enterprise-E has a crisis of faith after the demise of Commander Data. Believing she is unworthy of the name 'Enterprise', it is then that she meets a very particular young woman...


Disclaimer - Star Trek Franchise is the creation of Gene Roddenberry and currently under the ownership of CBS and Paramount. I do not own the characters, storyline of the franchise in any shape or form. All other references to pop culture likewise belong to their respective copyright holders.

A/N: This idea has its roots in a discussion about of what would happen if ships had anthropomorphic personifications like the countries did 'Axis Powers Hetalia'. Sailors and other sea farers often refer to their vessels like they were living things, so why not have the ships have avatars of their own? Of course, as with the case of all creative writing discussions, the conversation eventually got sidetracked from real life ships into sci-fi territory, and I somehow I was inspired to come up with this thing. Enjoy.

* * *

"Born into battle, the heir to legend… what does one do with such a curse?"

– Commander John Harrison, Star Trek Into Darkness

* * *

Heir to Legend

By Sasahara17

* * *

Special Thanks to my beta readers, Whiskey Golf and Trent01. Also in memory of Whiskey Gold, because he was shot (again) while proofreading this when came across yaoi holodeck fanfics (it's complicated). Alas, poor Whiskey Golf.

* * *

_Enterprise_.

When used in conjunction with naval vessels, it was a name that was seemingly touched by fate. From the age of sail to the Battle of Midway and beyond, every ship that bore that name served with distinction and pride. The legend was only fully realized at the dawn of the space age, and the birth of the United Federation of Planets.

In a very special Starfleet museum in San Francisco, dedicated to detailing the illustrious history of the ships and honoring their contribution to the cause of exploration for generations to come, a young woman in a Starfleet uniform leaned against the barrier of the main exhibit, her face thoughtful and melancholic.

The hour was late and the museum itself was closed, and there was only the pale moonlight of that filtered through the windows to light it. Even so, this young woman stood there in silence, her eyes slowly going over the vast legacy that was immortalized in it. Model versions of every ship bearing the name, save for the inclusion of the _Phoenix_, were arranged right to left in chronological order, and holographic posters were under each ship giving short description of their histories and exploits.

NX-01, the first starship built by for the purpose of exploration. NCC-1701, the ship made the historic five year mission that ushered in the Federation's golden age. NCC-1701-A, who brought peace between the Klingons and the Federation… and so on, until it came to the newest ship in to bear the name. NCC-1701-E. _Sovereign_-Class. Captained by Jean Luc Picard. Mighty heir to the legacy of her forebears…

NCC-1701-E, who got her decks shot out from under her by some Romulan harlot and was in the docks undergoing major repairs.

Again.

What a joke.

In her short life, she'd been almost taken over by the Borg, gotten trounced in the Briar Patch and now… now Commander Data was dead, all because she hadn't been strong enough.

No one on the crew blamed her. Her Captain, Jean Luc, had personally sat her down in his office and straight up told her this himself. The _Scimitar_ had gotten the drop on her while at warp, had the ability to fire while cloaked and was at least three times more powerful than she was. Realistically, she really hadn't had a chance even with the unexpected reinforcements they'd received.

How do you fight a ship that can fire while cloaked?

Esther felt her eyes drift over to the model of the _Enterprise_-A, the Enterprise that brought peace to between the Federation and the Klingons. Amelia had faced down a ship capable of fighting while cloaked. And unlike her who had two Romulan war birds to back her up, Amelia only had the Auntie Excel, who had only turned up in the tail end of it. It was the most lopsided battle of their time.

Amelia had won and had triumphantly sailed off into the sunset one last time before her decommissioning.

Esther had lost and had to be towed back into dry-dock by the Hermione, aka the _USS Hemmingway_.

For her entire career, Esther felt like she was the proverbial fourth wheel. Jean Luc's crew was a well-oiled, battle tested lot. There was never a challenge that they couldn't surmount, never an adversary they couldn't defeat, never an adventure they weren't willing to pursue. Really, they were a dream crew any other ship in Starfleet would have sold their warp nacelles to have.

Except that this dream team had a weak link: namely their good for nothing ship.

She'd been completely helpless when the Borg had boarded her. So helpless in fact Jean Luc had actually armed the self-destruct. He'd pushed so far into a corner he'd been left with no other option, on his own ship no less! The Briar patch fiasco had seen her chased about like a gutless coward getting shot at, and it was only though Riker's quick thinking that she'd emerged from that in one piece.

And then the Scimitar…

Esther started to sniffle as her eyes drifted over the model of the NCC-1701-D.

Dorothy. She was the one Jean Luc and the rest of his crew really wanted at their side. Even if they never said anything aloud, Esther knew that there wasn't a single member of Jean Luc's crew who wouldn't give everything for the chance to stand on the bridge of the NCC-1701-D again.

Responsible, reliable, resourceful Dorothy. Dorothy had accompanied them in the best years of their lives. She had laughed with them, cried with them, shared in their triumphs and journeyed with them in their greatest adventures, and in the end, it was Dorothy who had willingly sacrificed her own life to save the lives of her crew.

Dorothy wouldn't have let Data die.

Sitting alone in the shadow of the exhibit, accompanied only by her own self-loathing and guilt, Esther wondered just how she could live up to this impossible legend she had been given.

She could not find an answer.

* * *

Esther wasn't sure how long she'd been there, sitting alone in the darkness of the museum. By this point she'd curled into a ball next to the display, this monument to the proud legacy that she'd been given but could not do justice to. It was an unsightly display, but she was alone.

At least she thought she was.

"Whoa, you okay?"

Esther jerked in surprise. Standing over her with a concerned expression was a young chestnut haired woman in a black bomber jacket and blue jeans. "How long have you been crying there?" Suddenly very aware of the fact that someone had caught her, the mighty flagship of the Federation, acting like a fool, Esther quickly scrambled to her feet and tried to retain what dignity she had left.

"Who are you? The museum is closed, you're not supposed to be in here!" Esther quickly straightened out her uniform and trying to channel every ounce of the professionalism her captain had instilled in her.

"Well, duh. And neither are you, Miss Starfleet." The stranger placed her hands on her hips gave Esther a lazy grin. "But hey, if you don't tell, I won't!

The fact her hypocrisy had been caught out was embarrassing and Esther flushed from the roots of her hairs to her toes. Thankfully, the boisterous young woman didn't seem to care one bit about this.

"Besides, this is the _Enterprise_ museum! Pure awesomeness!" The young stranger flung both her arms out wide, "I can't believe they dedicated an entire museum _to ONE SHIP!_ And by golly this is huge! This is amazing!"

"I wish." Esther muttered under her breath.

"The name's Emilia. Emilia Pike." The chestnut haired girl whirled over to face Esther and struck out a hand. "Put 'er there, fellow lawbreaker."

Esther started at the hand with narrowed eyes.

"It's called a handshake," Emilia said.

"I know what it is," Esther replied with suspicion, never once taking her eyes off the intruder. "I am also not in the habit of shaking hands with thieves."

Emilia retracted her hand and then rubbed the back of her head with an embarrassed smile. "Eh, nope. I'm a Federation starship. There's nothing for me to steal here that wouldn't land me and my Captain in a load of hot water."

Esther frowned thoughtfully as she studied the strange girl intently. A close glance at Emilia was enough to tell Esther that the former was indeed a ship like she was, not much older than her. In fact, if Enterprise were the hazard a guess, this young stranger had been around for even less time than she had been. "And what possessed 'a ship' to break into the museum at this ungodly hour?"

"Well, me and my crew was about to set sail after taking care of some business in here when I found out about this place. Hell no am I leaving Sol Sector without seeing the _Enterprise_ museum with my own eyes! So despite the best efforts of my entirely too by-the-book science officer to ruin my day, here I am." Emilia grinned, shamelessly all but declaring that she'd just given her science officer the slip.

Esther made a mental note to search up which starship used the alias 'Emilia' when she got back to Starfleet HQ. This cowboy attitude was most definitely one that wasn't tolerated by Starfleet. Still, right now Esther was hardly in any place to lecture this miscreant, since she herself wasn't supposed to be in here, but clearly someone needed to be disciplined.

And then the outstretched hand was back. "So! Handshake!" Emilia beamed.

Esther stared at the hand for a few, long moments before relenting. Well, it couldn't hurt, could it? "My name is Esther. Esther Picard."

"Wait a moment. You're a ship too," Emilia observed in confusion. A few moments passed where the younger girl studied Esther intently for a few moment before her eyes widened considerably. "Wait, you're… you're the _Enterprise_!

Ester took a step back in surprise. "Well, yes but…"

"YOU'RE THE _ENTERPRISE_-E!" Emilia jumped with joy. "HOW COW, AM I LUCKY OR WHAT?!"

Oh no.

Emilia was something worse than a cat burglar.

Something far worse than a truant starship.

Emilia… was a fan girl.

Esther so did not want to deal with this right now.

* * *

"Oh man, I am so not dressed for this," Emilia chuckled abashedly, still grinning like a complete idiot as she quickly dusted herself off. "Oh my god! Miss _Enterprise_! It is a real honor to meet the flagship of the Federation!"

"Please, I'm nothing special." Esther sighed, feeling more unlikely than ever.

"Uh, this entire museum says otherwise?" Emilia motioned towards the main display with all the model starships again. This unfortunately drew Esther's attention back towards the source of her melancholy.

"No, Really. I'm nothing special." Esther said softly, once again reminded of her shortcomings.

"If you say so," Emilia said skeptically before looking at Ester with obvious concern. "So, why is the _Enterprise_, pride of the Federation Starfleet, moping around all alone in the middle of the night. In her own museum no less?"

It was a highly personal question indeed. Really, Esther could have just told Emilia that it was one of her damn business and told the younger ship to leave. However, that was not Starfleet's way, and returning the compassion with scorn would be poor form.

Especially true since Esther was standing in the presence of all her forebears. It would not do to disgrace the name _Enterprise_ any further by being a heartless cur, in addition to being a weakling.

"I lost the man who would be my first officer recently," Esther admitted, her eyes downcast. "In case you haven't read the news, Commander Data sacrificed himself in the Battle in the Bassen Rift two weeks ago."

Emilia's eyes widened in sympathy. "Oh. I'm so sorry to hear that."

"He saved over eight hundred lives, including my Captain's… and mine."

The two girls went silent as the words sunk in. For a starship, losing a key member of her crew, especially Captain or first officer, was a painful experience due to the empathic link she had with all aspects of her being. Those two were the heart and soul of their ships, the ones who looked over every other man and woman that served there. Losing one or the other was agonizing, more so when that person had given their lives to save everyone else's.

"It was my fault," Esther admitted, with such self-loathing that Emilia actually flinched. "I'm such a failure. There wasn't anything I could do."

"Okay, when did this take a turn for the awkward?" Emilia muttered before speaking out. "Um, you're the starship. There wasn't anything you were supposed to do. That's the crew's job."

"Not true," Esther snarled. Esther didn't mean to come off so aggressively; her anger was directed at herself more than her new acquaintance. Even so, her face was twisted in a rictus of anger and hate. "I had one job, and that was keeping my teleporter operational long enough so that Mister Data didn't have to go over there and get himself killed!"

Of all the calamities that had happened to her that day, that was the one that got her the most. Perhaps she had been outgunned by a ship that could fire while cloaked; but what really got Mister Data killed was the fact the transporter, HER transporter, had shorted out when Picard had needed it most, prompting the android to jump into the Scimitar himself to sacrifice himself in Picard's place.

The one person on the ship she loved the most, the special crewmember she and the rest of the _Enterprise_'s crew held dear to their hearts, had died because she wasn't good enough.

She had one job: being a ship that her crew could rely on in the direst of times and in that regard she had failed _spectacularly_.

By this point Esther was once again gripping the cloth of her uniform trousers with balled fists and was sniffling again, the memories of that painful incident once again playing themselves over and over in her mind.

Then Esther felt two comforting arms wrap themselves around her in a motherly embrace. "It's going to be okay, _Enterprise_." Emma whispered in an almost motherly voice. "It's going to be okay."

The dam burst.

"I had one job!" Enterprise finally allowed herself to cry, throwing dignity and poise to the wind. "I had _one_ bloody job! And I failed them! I failed Mister Data! I'm so, so sorry!"

"It's going to be okay kid," Emilia said soothingly. "It's going to be okay."

* * *

"That's quite a story," Emilia said.

Both ships were now sitting beside each other on the floor facing the model exhibit. Once Esther had calmed down enough, the _Enterprise_ had painstakingly recounted the events leading up to the death of Mister Data to Emilia, who simply listened to in silence.

It felt good to tell someone else of her worries and doubts for once. All her life, Esther had internalized everything to appear at the confident, professional flagship she was supposed to be. Never once had she allowed herself to show weakness, knowing that the eyes of not just her crew, but all the Federation were upon her. Most bought into this façade. Only Jean Luc and a few select others knew the doubts and fears that lay behind it.

It felt good to take off her mask for this stranger and bear her heart to someone else for once.

"You lost your first officer. It must have been painful."

"Tell me about it." Esther sniffled. Ship spirits were empathically linked with all aspects of their being. From the metal plating of her hull to the heartbeat of her crewmen, Esther felt it all. While Data had not been a mortal being as most understood it, the moment his consciousness came to an abrupt end caused unbearable pain to Esther.

"When he died, it felt like someone had punched me in the face. It hurt more than when I rammed that harlot at full impulse." Esther admitted honestly. "Data… Data was special. If Picard was my Captain, then Data would be my brother. My big, emotionally stunted but well-meaning big brother. He was artificial, like me. I could relate to him on a level I couldn't with anyone else on my crew. And then just like that, he-he was gone. Wh-What was I supposed to think?"

"I can relate."

"No, no you can't." Esther said.

"A year and a half ago, I lost two Captains to the same bad guy in the span of a week." Emilia told her, gently patting Esther on the back. "Trust me I know."

Esther stared at Emilia in shock, her mouth going wide at the very thought.

Emilia wasn't lying.

Esther cupped her hand in front of her mouth in horror. "Oh my god."

"Yeah." Emilia rolled her eyes. "I get that from the other starships when I tell them that."

"What happed?" Esther said in horror. Losing Commander Data, the being who would have been her first officer had been the most painful thing Esther had ever felt. But if she'd lost Picard… and then if she'd lost Picard _twice_…

There mere thought sent shivers down Esther's spine.

"What happened?"

"Funnily enough, my story is very much the same as yours. If you're willing to listen that is." Emilia said

"You listened to mine. It's only fair that I listen to yours." Esther reasoned.

Esther then remembered she'd forgotten to ask what Emilia's name, her real name, was. This stranger had witnessed Esther at her most vulnerable, something not even Esther's closest friends had seen. A feeling of self-consciousness came over Esther as she allowed herself to listen to the other's ship's tragedy, as if judging herself against her new friend.

"There was a terrorist attack on where Admiral Pi-my first Captain was attending a conference. He was one of the casualties. I was in space dock at the time, but I watched the news and saw it happen live. And then when I pain hit, I just… I just knew I had lost him." Emilia said, the pain evident in her eyes.

"I… I felt him slowly slip away even though we were miles apart. It wasn't quick, or painless." Emilia said, pure sorrow showing on her features. "Pike. He was the closest thing me and Jim, my real Captain, had to a father. Everything we knew, we learned from him. Having him die like that, scared and alone… not even knowing what it was that killed him… he deserved better."

"Oh. I'm sorry." Esther suppressed a shudder at the very idea of having her captain pass on while she was miles away, helpless to do anything but watch a news recording. It wasn't a pleasant thought.

Still, it bugged Esther. A terrorist attack? The Federation was vast and many things happened every day, but even that she would have heard of something like this, especially if an Admiral was involved.

"My second Captain, Jim, was the first officer. You could say that he's my best friend since we go way back to my commissioning. And at the time, both of us were mad as hell. We tracked down the bastard who killed the old man to a where he'd run off to and chased him down. We were going to drag his sorry ass in to stand trial, and nothing was going to stop us. Make him pay for what he took from us." Emilia shook her head sadly, "And then it all went wrong."

"What happened?" Esther asked, a sneaking suspicion coming over her.

"We got blindsided. I ended up having to fight against a ship much more powerful than me." Emilia shrugged. "I may be a Heavy Cruiser, but at my core I'm just an explorer like every other Starfleet vessel. I ran headfirst into a fully-fledged battleship out to kill me, my Captain and every single member of my crew. Naturally, I had my ass kicked. It wasn't even a fight."

"Ow." Esther couldn't help but give an understanding wince. Her experience Scimitar wasn't pleasant either. Boy wasn't that a nasty coincidence.

"Got ambushed at warp like you did. Except it was worse, since you at least had a chance to fight back." Emilia grumbled in embarrassment. "Victoria was such a bitch. She just showed up, started shooting and didn't stop until I was all venting atmosphere from half my decks. I didn't even get to so much as fire a torpedo. Seriously, there were tissues hanging out of my nose and everything. It was an epic beating."

"Well you survived, obviously," Esther pointed out.

"Yeah. I got lucky." Emilia chucked. "My chief engineer snuck aboard the other vessel, the magnificent bastard, and shut down the bitch's weapon systems from her own engineering deck."

"And then?"

"Then my first officer, a Vulcan by the way, tricked Viccy into beaming 72 armed photon torpedoes into her own cargo bay by doing the best bluff I have ever seen outside of in a poker game. Boom." Emilia gestured wildly as she grinned from ear to ear. "Piece of advice? Never, ever, trust a Vulcan."

Esther's response was gave a low impressed whistle at that. From the sounds of it, Emilia's crew was at least as good as her own. Disabling an enemy ship from engineering and then tricking her to blowing herself up from the inside was no small feat. "Still, this doesn't tell me how you lost your Captain."

"I'm getting to that." Emilia said, then continued her tale. "Anyway, we hadn't even begun to celebrate taking out the bitch when I got caught in the gravitational pull of a class M planet, just as what was left of my warp drive went kaput. I have to tell you, reentry without shields is not a fun experience."

Esther once again balked at in horror of yet another painful notion. Reentry without shields with that kind of hull damage was a horrifying thought to her; Esther couldn't even imagine the amount of agony Emilia must have been in as the heat from atmosphere ripped away at her scorched, damaged hull while she and her crew plummeted to her death.

"H-How did you even survive something like that?"

"Lucky for me, my Captain jumped into the warp core to realign the housings. Made it all work again." Emilia sighed.

Wait, her captain realigned the warp core housings? But wasn't the core completely filled with lethal radiation? Why anyone who would have been in there would be-

Then it clicked.

"I was in so much pain at the time I almost missed his life slipping away."

"He sacrificed himself." It was just like when Mister Data sacrificed himself to stop Shinzon from killing everyone. Esther's heart went out to the poor ship. Two captains in such a short span of time, each one someone she was intimately close to. How does one even get over something like that? "I'm so sorry."

"Nah, s'all good. Jim came from the dead later, so that's different at least."

You could actually see the exact moment the gears in Esther's head stopped working.

"What."

"Hey, Starfleet. Weird shit happens." Emilia shrugged like it was the most natural thing in the world. "So I have a Captain who specializes in resurrection. From what I've read, Picard's seen weirder things and Spocky-boy managed it once or twice himself."

"Sorry, which ship are you again? I… really need to go through the registry to find out who you are." Ester shook her head incredulously. Coming back from the dead? What?

Emilia raised an eyebrow. "Do you seriously think Section 31 will honestly put this on public record? I mean, nearly dying is one thing, but out and out resurrection?"

"Er, point. But at least tell me you name?"

"Emilia, and that's all you're going to get from me." Emilia laughed and have Esther a hearty smack on her back. "Anyway, my point is, you aren't the only starship out there to have gotten dragged into the space dock after getting the asskicking of a lifetime. You're just feeling sorry for yourself right now because it's still so fresh in your mind. You'll get over it eventually."

Now that Esther had time to think about it, Emilia was right. After all, starships and their crews got into trouble all the time, and tragedy was just part and parcel with space exploration. Starships lost their Captains and crewmen all the time, and Enterprise herself was no stranger to that. It was just that this was the first time ever Esther had lost such an important member of her crew, and as if any first it was a shock to her system.

Now she was feeling really stupid for moping about when faced with someone who had suffered for more than she could have, not to mention a ship that was half her own age.

"You're quite worldly for someone your age, do you know that?" Esther said, finally feeling a smidgen of her confidence return to her.

"When you're out on the frontier, you tend to see a lot of things." Emilia boasted proudly. It was seem that humility wasn't one of her virtues.

"So you're a career deep space explorer then," Esther figured "What are you doing back in Sector 001?"

"If you really must know, it involves a madman with a blue box, the latter of whom happens to be a trekkie, whatever that means, about two hundred time displaced tribbles and, finally, a bunch of space cowboy smugglers in a Firefly class transport rust bucket that can barely fly." The chestnut haired said in a deadpan voice, one that clearly spoke of incomprehensible stress, frustration and anguish. "Are you sure you want to know?"

"Actually, no. You convinced me with the word time-displaced." Esther waved her hands in a very obvious 'no' motion to emphasize her point.

Lesson number one about Starfleet: anything to do with time travel was usually more trouble than it was worth.

_Enterprise_ herself learned about this the hard way. When she'd gone back in time, Esther had gotten the dubious pleasure to briefly meet Pandora, aka the _Phoenix_, one of her idols in her early days. Said meeting with aforementioned idol had left Esther traumatized for weeks after the fact, and that was even after she had been boarded and almost brainwashed with the Borg.

Time travel.

Not a chance in hell.

"Well, if anything nice has come from this little sojourn of mine, it's that I got to see this cool display." Emilia sat up and walked over to the barrier. Younger ship leaned against the railing, her eyes slowly tracing the lineage of ships from left to right. "Man, who would have thought one ship would get so much respect?"

As Esther got up herself to join her new friend, feel her eyes fall upon the model of the NCC-1701. Yes, if there was any ship in Starfleet that deserved such respect, it was the Enterprise. That _Enterprise_.

"So, what's it like for you?" The younger ship turned to lean her back against the railing and her arms folded. "Being the heir to legend?"

"Its… it's not as good as you might think." Esther admitted honestly as she leaned forward with her forearms resting flat against the railing. Well, as long as she was babbling, she might as well go all the way, shouldn't she? "It's very hard. Starfleet expects so much of me that sometimes I can't feel like I'm being crushed under the weight."

"Really?"

"I'm the flagship. Even though I don't actually have a flag officer on board, Picard is so well respected that he may as well be commander of Starfleet himself." Esther elaborated. "Every other ship in the fleet looks to me for example. This uniform?" Esther gestured to what she was wearing. "It's about all I've worn since the day of my commissioning."

And so Esther bared her soul to her new friend. Her true thoughts about the prison that was the legacy she had been entrusted. How, from the day she had been 'born', she had always had to control her every action, for fear of not just disgracing Starfleet but disgracing the name. How she had to always maintain a cool and calm disposition, obeying every code and regulation in Starfleet to set an example for everyone else. How she was constantly measured up, by herself and her crew, against the titanic shadow of the _Enterprise_-D.

How she was slowly, but surely being, crushed by the pressure of just being the _Enterprise_.

* * *

"That's why I came here," Esther finished after what seemed like an eternity. "I needed time to think, and remind myself what it was all for."

Emilia was silent, as she had been the entire time Esther bore her heart out. The curiosity on the younger ship's face was gone, replaced with furrowed brows that indicated Emilia was in deep thought.

"…what does one do with such a curse?"

Esther blinked. "Sorry, what was that?"

Emilia was silent for a few seconds before she looked up, apparently having come to a decision. "Something an enemy of ours once said to me. How a legacy can be just as much of a curse as a blessing."

"I can attest to that," Esther said sourly. "Sometimes I don't know what to do. There's so much to live up to, but every time I try and feel that I fall short."

"I wouldn't call saving the Federation twice 'falling short'." Emilia pointed out.

"It's not that simple." Esther sighed again, her eyes once again looking at the NCC-1701 just in front of her. All this talk of legacy was drawing her attention to the cause of her discomfort. "You're not the one with this impossible legacy you have to live up to. You won't understand."

"Try me," Emilia said cockily.

While she was bristling at the younger ship's challenge, Esther nevertheless complied. She pointed a finger at the NCC-1701, the greatest of the line, and spoke. "Look at her! Every _Enterprise_ since the first were explorers, trailblazers and diplomats. Each and every one of them shook the galaxy just by existing and did it with skill and courage."

"And you don't have skill or courage?"

"NO!" Esther roared, slamming both fists against the railing. "I'm just lucky! Everything that's happened to me, everything I've survived, was though nothing but sheer dumb luck!"

Despite being the a _Sovereign_, the most powerful ship class currently serving in the fleet, and despite having the best crew in the fleet, Enterprise felt she should have been so much more. Saving the Federation? Pah! Every _Enterprise_ that came before her saved the Federation at least once every leap year! But Esther? She'd been riding to those victories on the coattails of her crew and had never really done anything to contribute. There was always that nagging feeling in the back of her mind that anything she could have done, Dorothy could have done better.

"The _Enterprise_ should be more than what I currently am!" Esther declared, and then pointed to the model of the NCC-1701-D, the one whose shadow she was constantly under. "Explorer." The she pointed at the _Ambassador_ class, NCC-1701-C. "Warrior." The _Excelsior_ class, NCC-1701-B. "Role model." The NCC-1701-A. "Peacekeeper."

Then finally, her finger came to the NCC-1701.

The legend.

Esther really didn't have to say anything at that point.

"I… I should be more than this." Esther gestured towards herself as if to say how inadequate she was. "Most of my missions basically involve me going somewhere, planting a flag down and saying 'Hey, the _Enterprise_ is here, don't make a fuss or Picard will get angry'. My first assignment was patrolling the Romulan neutral zone for heaven's sake. Most of the time I feel like I'm just coasting through my service life with no goal or aim."

"Fate rarely works that way, Esther."

"I know. I know. But right now I feel like I could be so much more, you know?" Esther sighed. "I come from a family of distinguished explorers, diplomats and warriors, yet I've had only three great achievements in my seven years. Four if you counted the work my crew did in 2376, but I that was just me sitting around twiddling my fingers while they did the heavy lifting."

Every mission seemed like her just sitting around while her crew did their work.

Emilia was visibly frowning at this point. "They should have given you to another Captain." The younger ship reasoned. "They should have given you to anyone but Jean Luc Picard."

"It's not his fault." Esther quickly jumped to her Captain's defense, quickly realizing how her whining must have sounded. "Picard has been good to me."

"I see. Then I stand corrected. But it doesn't change the fact some bonehead in Starfleet never gave you the chance to stand on your own merits." Emilia said bluntly, clearly annoyed by what she was seeing. "For what is supposedly the most powerful ship in the fleet, you have one heck of an inferiority complex."

"When I'm constantly in the shadow of her, how can I not?" Esther jerked her head towards the NCC-1701 again.

"Don't you think this must be how the _Enterprise_-A must have been feeling all the time?" Emilia said after some time. "Mind you, I only read this second hand, but I think she must have been hard pressed to fill in m-the first _Enterprises'_ shoes. And look at her now, proud member of the _Enterprise_ heritage."

"I know that," Esther said sourly. "She salvaged the Khitomer accords. Set the foundations for peace between the Federation and the Klingon Empire," And Amelia did it facing down a cloaked ship too, _without_ losing her new first officer or needing to be towed back to a space dock. "I couldn't do that!"

"Girl, you have some serious self-esteem issues." Emilia grumbled darkly.

"Of course I have goddamn self-esteem issues! I'm a stand in for that ship!" Esther gesticulated wildly at the model of the _Galaxy_-class _Enterprise_, years of pent up frustration boiling over in one furious outburst. "I'm nothing but a pretender to the name!"

The slap that resounded through the darkness of the museum was painfully clear against the silence. Esther reached a shaking hand up to her slowly reddening cheek, not quite believing that Emilia, a younger ship, had dared lay and hand on the flagship of the Federation. "Wha-Whuh-What?"

On the other hand, Emilia looked more annoyed at having to get physical than anything else.

"Miss Esther. If you think you are nothing but a pretender, then you are sorely mistaken." Emilia said angrily placing one hand on her hip while holding the other in front of Esther face as if to lecture the older ship. "If there is anyone who has earned the right to bear the name, I would think it would be the ship who saved this bloody planet twice!"

"B-But I…"

"But nothing! You're THE _ENTERPRISE_. So what if you've been blundering through each and every one of your adventures? It doesn't changed the fact you _saved the freaking Federation_." Emilia huffed. "If that doesn't make you awesome, I don't know what does."

"But the other _Enterprises_ would have done it better than me." Esther stammered out. "They wouldn't have stumbled through their adventures half blind not knowing what they were-what are you laughing!?"

Indeed, the second Esther has started talking about the previous _Enterprises_ knowing what they were doing, Emilia had burst into uncontrolled laughter. She was laughing so hard in fact that the younger ship had to steady herself on the exhibit railing to stop herself from falling to the floor in a heap.

"What's so damn funny!?" Esther half shouted. Between Emilia's sudden fit of laughter and her indignity at being slapped, the flagship's shock slowly transformed into anger. How dare this nameless vessel lay a hand on the flagship of the fleet and now have the gall to laugh at her! The nerve!

"Sorry, sorry, but that was by far the stupidest thing I've heard anyone say!" Emilia said in between breaths as she tried to get herself back under control. "Know what they were doing? Girl, seriously, I know you have them on pedestals, but pl-ease!"

"What are you babbling about?"

Managing to regain her composure, Emilia merely stood back up and looked Esther in the face with her roguish smile, unrepentant in the face of the Enterprise's anger. "I bet you half by shuttlecraft complement that NONE of the _Enterprises_ had any ideas what the hell they were doing when they were going on their adventures."

Realizing what Emilia was getting at, and the unfortunate truth in the latter's words, Esther quickly responded with logic. "I'm sure there was a certain period of adjustment…"

"Do you know why they called Montgomery Scott a miracle worker?" Emilia said daintily, and rather cheekily, inspecting her fingernails for effect. "It certainly wasn't because Kirk's ship was the most brilliant piece of machinery ever; quite the opposite in fact."

Esther flushed red with embarrassment. Emilia had her there. One of the most famous facts about the original Enterprise was the fact Kirk kept trying to make the ship do things it wasn't meant to do, and Scott had to actually get into the habit of padding his own estimates to try and keep 'the mad bastard' for asking too many ridiculous things.

"…okay, I'll admit I said something pretty stupid. But that didn't excuse you from slapping me in the face." Esther refused to concede. "Explain yourself."

"Very well." Emilia looked directly into Esther's eyes. "You are the _Enterprise_. You have the best crew in all of Starfleet, a crew that any other starship could kill to have. You are the heir to a legacy that has existed for centuries. And you come down here, alone, to hide like some emo-git to cry alone."

Esther threw her arms out powerlessly. "Then what am I supposed to do? Cry in front of everyone? Appear weak before every other ship in Starfleet?"

"Yes." Emilia retorted sharply. So sharply in fact that Esther actually felt like she'd been slapped again. "You are the _Enterprise_. The only people whose opinions you should give two shits about are your crew. Everyone else? Tell them to go hang, because you're THE _Enterprise_. If you want to grieve when you lost someone close to you, then you are going to grieve and to hell with anyone who says you need to be an unfeeling robot, because that NOT what the Federation is about."

Esther was taken completely aback by the sincerity and the conviction behind Emilia's words. Although the other ship was so much younger than her, the look in the latter's eyes spoke of wisdom and confidence that Esther did not yet have.

"But I'm supposed to be a role model." Esther replied, shaken in the face of true confidence. "Every other ship in Starfleet and the other superpowers look to me to set an example."

"To hell with them." Emilia jabbed a thumb to the model of the NCC-1701. "Do you think Kirk or his ship gave a damn about being perfect role models for the rest of the fleet? Stop trying to force yourself into that mold if you don't want to!"

"I…" Esther began, only to be silence when Emilia got right in her face and launched into another tirade.

"For that matter, what the hell's with your 'I got though everything though sheer dumb luck' anyway?" Emilia seethed, her fury unrelenting. "Newsflash: one of the CV-6 _Enterprise's_ first nicknames was '_the Lucky E_', and by that I mean she was the luckiest bloody ship in the history of the entire US Navy. If an entire fleet's worth of ships is out gunning for your ass, I don't care how good your crew is; the only reason you're going to be staying afloat with everybody in the Pacific to shoot the deck out from under you if fates themselves decree 'thou shalt be unsinkable'! And she was!"

"I…" Esther tried, but once again she was cut off. Boy, Emilia was really tall, and really big, for such a young ship. What was her real body like, anyway? Esther hadn't really bothered with her empathic senses yet, but now that she was looking she came to the realization that Emilia must have been over 700 meters long!

Holy cow, that's big.

By this point, Emilia had dropped all pretense of trying to be motivational was just ranting. "And another thing? What's with you moping about looking like you're weak? I had a look at your specs and by golly you are a BEAST. Only that little hellion _Defiant_ has more boom than you! I have like, six phaser arrays, and you have what? Sixteen? Plus, quantum torpedoes? Maximum warp factor over 9.9? Replicators so you can eat whatever the hell you want whenever the hell you want? A holodeck you can write yaoi fanfics about your officers to make unlimited blackmail material? Bloody hell girl, I-"

A second slap echoed in the museum.

It was followed by a long silence.

Then….

"What the hell did you do that for?" Emilia said stoically, as if unsure of what to make of this new development.

"It was the only way I could think to shut you up," Esther replied shyly.

At this point, Esther didn't care she was the flagship of the fleet or that Emilia was being highly disrespectful; at this point it was clear that despite their disparity in ages Emilia was definitely the more capable and confident vessel, true confidence and not the pale imitation Esther had. Esther didn't have the kind of steel needed to stand up to her.

Esther was facing another vessel in battle, alone and without the calm and experienced Jean Luc Picard or the daring Will Riker at her side, and was terrified out of her mind.

She had no idea how Emilia was going to react.

Seconds passed as Esther watched in trepidation as the larger ship, and Emilia definitely had to be larger than her now that Esther had a think about it, slowly reached up to touch the reddening part of her cheek where Esther had slapped her.

A large grin slowly blossomed on Emilia's face.

"That's more like it."

* * *

It took sometime before Emilia or Esther could stop laughing. The second Emilia had uttered those outrageous words, the sheer ridiculousness of the situation dawned on both ships and they couldn't help themselves anymore. Two Federation starships slapping each other in front of the Enterprise memorial would just sounded stupid! Eventually they calmed down and their conversation resumed, thankfully without either of them being angry anymore.

"Okay, so you're a little mopey about losing your first important officer. I get that." Emilia reasoned as she returned to her previous posture, leaned back against the exhibit railing. "Every starship loses someone eventually. It's just that we deal with it in their own way."

"Yes, I understand that now." Esther agreed. Now that she'd allowed herself a good cry and a small outburst, she was feeling much better now. Surprisingly good, in fact. Maybe Emilia was right about her trying too hard.

"So yeah. Your little emo phase? Excused for now since you weren't all right in the head," Emilia nodded satisfactorily. "Just make sure I don't ever catch you acting like this again, or I swear I'll shove a photon torpedo up your ass."

Esther gave a short chortle at that. By now, she'd gotten used to Emilia's gruff demeanor and coarse sense of humor. Although the younger ship was very far from the ideal Starfleet vessel, Esther honestly thought the younger ship was a breath of fresh air.

"Still… what should I do, Emilia? I'm seven years old and I still feel like I haven't lived up to my potential." Esther asked earnestly.

Emilia groaned. "Really? Just after I threatened you? Okay, now where'd did I put those torpedoes-"

"I'm serious! I'm asking you for advice here!" Esther said quickly, just to prove she wasn't moping about. "You're more experienced than me, so I was hoping that you could give me a few pointers, really!"

Emilia gave Esther a sharp look, and seemed to decide that the older vessel was really, honestly asking for her advice. "Man, this is awkward. You're twice my age." Emilia mumbled.

"But we starships don't age the same way humans do." Esther reminded her. "The more we experience, the faster we age. That must be how you're so wise compared to me since you've been out exploring the fringes while I've been on diplomatic missions inside Federation space. In that way, you're older than me."

It was easy to forget that despite how ship avatars could seem most of the time, they were not mortal in the normal sense of the world. Indeed the Federation, and Starfleet by extension, treated them like their very own subset of alien species in how they would change and evolve. It was also why she was so attached to Mister Data; they were both artificial beings that regarded Picard as their father figure.

In short although Emilia was physically younger than her, mentally it was a whole different story. Dedicated explorer ships tended to be like that.

"Okay, okay. So you want to ask your great, great, great grandmother for advice. Yeah gotcha." Emilia grumbled in annoyance. "This is SO not what I was expecting when I decided I was going to visit the _Enterprise_ museum."

"Please do not mock me." Esther shuffled her feet with embarrassment. "It's embarrassing enough as it is that I, the flagship, have to ask a newer ship for help."

"Ah, yes, sorry about that." Emilia cleared her throat, straightened her back puffed out her chest and looked Esther dead in the eye. "Okay. Are you ready? I'm going to tell you exactly what you are doing wrong and what you need to do to fix it."

Esther nodded and drew her full attention onto Emilia, somehow knowing that the other ship's words would be the ones that would irreversibly shape her life from this day forward.

"Absolutely nothing. Just have more confidence in yourself; you're doing fine."

"What?!" Esther shrieked.

"Okay, maybe you need to go giving the finger to the Prime Directive a few more times to make yourself a _real Enterprise_, but yeah. You're good." Emilia nodded. Then she was suddenly seized by the shoulders and shaken really roughly by a frantic Sovereign-class heavy explorer.

"What do you mean, I'm doing fine? I thought I told you that I'm having problems! Please, Emilia, I need help here!" Esther practically screamed into her face.

"Annnd eeeeyeeee tooooolllld youuuuu eeeexaaaactly whaaaatttt yooouuuu neeeeed toooo doooo!" Emilia replied frantically pulling off the other ship from shaking her senseless. "Seriously Esther, that's all that's wrong with you. You've already done the line proud, all you need to do is stay on course and everything will be smooth sailing."

"Stay on course? Look at me!" Esther gestured to herself again. "Under all my feigned confidence, I'm just a nervous wreck!"

"And that's why I said you should have more self-confidence. Seriously, you've saved the bloody Federation. What's next? Punch out the Daleks?"

"No, that was Picard's doing! Sure Picard's saved the Federation several times while we've been together, but he could have done that in any other ship!"

"Ah, but he didn't." Emilia said with a knowing smirk. "He chose _you_."

All stop.

Esther looked at Emilia with wide eyes and an open mouth as the younger ship's words reverberated through her head.

"Out of all the ships in Starfleet, out of the multitude of excellent vessels he could have ended up on, he chose _you_. Rare is the chance a Starfleet captain is so respected that he is given the choice to captain _and_ name his own ship." Emilia explained carefully. "Only one other Captain in all the history of Starfleet was given the honor of being having the _Enterprise _reserved for him, and his name was James Tiberius Kirk. The fact Picard has his name stamped on this blank slate in the docks as his new _Enterprise_ is a historical moment in itself."

She was speechless.

Esther had never thought about it that way.

"He… he didn't pick the name." Esther stuttered out, feeling very light headed.

"Come now, you know there was no other name that anyone would have picked." Emilia nodded sagely. "And you say you haven't done anything of note? That every _Enterprise_ saves the Federation at some point, so that doesn't make you special at all? What's that over there?"

Emilia pointed, and Esther looked.

"That's the _Phoenix_." Esther stated. Indeed the missile shaped model was situated just over the NX-01, reminding everyone who visited just how the first Starfleet vessel could never have been possible without Cochrane's wonder missile. It was the only model on the display that wasn't an _Enterprise_, but it was included because it was that significant to warp travel it would be stupid to leave it out.

"Uh, hm? And what did you do, regarding the _Phoenix_?" Emilia smirked.

Esther's eyes flew open at Emilia's words. How did she know?

"But that's supposed to be classified! It was a severe case of time travel that would have been a severe breach of the Temporal Prime Directive if it wasn't for the fact we were fixing damage to the time stream caused by the Borg. Picard had the entire incident sealed and stored away!"

The official record would only state that Picard had shown up at the last minute to save Sector 001 from the Borg, and nothing more. Time travel was indeed a touchy subject.

Emilia blinked. "Actually I take back what I said about you not breaking enough rules. Making a pretzel out of the Temporal Prime Directive and having Starfleet actually congratulate us for it is something me and my boys haven't had a chance to do yet."

"Emilia!"

"Right, right." Emilia huffed at Esther's indignant shout. "Okay, let's just say that blue box I mentioned? She's a professional time traveler. She filled me in on some of the a details… okay all of the details it was a hell of a story, about what you did. She was the one who pointed me to this museum."

"But…! But…! How does _she_ know?"

"She said something about breaking some fourth wall and being a fan of 'Trek VIII and IX, but not X'. I dunno, time travel. What can you do?" Emilia shrugged again, before gathering herself and getting back on point. "Anyway, we're getting side tracked here." Emilia pointed at the _Phoenix_ again and repeated herself. "What happened when you met the _Phoenix_?"

Seeing as how Emilia was trying to make some very important point, one that for the life of her Esther couldn't understand, Esther decided to play along. "Well, the Borg went back in time to mess up the First Contact with the Vulcans. They almost did it too, if we didn't step in."

"And what would have happened if you hadn't?"

"Well the Borg would have taken over the Alpha Quadrant by the time the 24th Century rolled around." Esther shivered at the memories. That whole episode was terrifying for her. It had been the first time she'd really been tested against the Federation's enemies, and of all the enemies she'd had to face, it had to be the Borg.

Her jubilation of riding like the cavalry to resolve the Battle of Sector 001, what should have been the moment where she'd earned her place among the giants, were quickly forgotten when she'd been boarded by the Borg themselves.

That horrible feeling of that cancer eating away inside of her as it started killing her crew and perverting every part of her being was not something time could wash away. The helplessness, the danger, the feeling of uselessness as her normally unshakable Captain and his courageous crew were pushed further and further back by that festering disease haunted her dreams even to this day. The feeling of her very soul being transformed into this abomination, piece by piece, was a nightmare she never wanted to feel again.

And the sad part was that the Borg, twisted inhuman machines they were, forced her to like it. Turned her pain into pleasures she couldn't describe. Tempting her to submit to them and get it over with, just like they had tempted Data and Picard. But she'd resisted. She'd fought. She'd stayed true to the ideals her name embodied even when she was begging and crying for it to all end.

When Picard had eventually made the decision to abandon ship and arm the self-destruct, she'd been almost relieved at the time that the nightmare that her short life had become would be coming to a close. But at the very last moment she'd chickened out and, with the help of Data, formulated a plan to outsmart the Borg queen so she wouldn't have to die. She'd thrown away certain, if pyrrhic, victory for a chance to attain a total one. She gambled, when she wasn't supposed to.

Admittedly, it was because of that gamble that everything had turned out for the best, but it was after that horrible incident that _Enterprise_ started to hate her own weakness. She was the ship, the bastion of safety among the rough seas her crew could count on. However, she could remember the butchery in her own corridors, her inability to do anything but stand there and watch as her crew, her proud brave crew, fought to the death… Sacrificing themselves to save the dream.

And she almost threw it all away because she decided to take a risk that nearly didn't work out.

She was useless.

"Picard and Data saved the day. If it wasn't for them, I'd have become the heart of a new Borg collective, and Earth would be doomed." Esther shivered again. "It was all them."

"Really, and I suppose if 'it was all them' then those Photon torpedoes that Data launched at the _Phoenix_ wouldn't have found their mark." Emilia said sharply. "Because last time I checked, it takes two to fire a torpedo on a starship. The tactical officer-"

"And the ship," Esther finished, not quite understating what Emilia was getting at.

"If you'd fallen, you could have easily made the corrections to the Data's bluff." Emilia explained happily. "If you were really that cowardly, you wouldn't have fought the Borg every step of the way and gave them as much trouble as you could. If you were really inconsequential, the _Phoenix_ would have been blown to space dust."

Esther was speechless. She'd always saw first adventure as a dark part in her own history. Yet the way Emilia described it, it seemed almost heroic. Almost… legendary. But Esther still failed to understand. What was Emilia getting at?

"Tell me Esther. What would have happened if the _Phoenix_ would have been destroyed?" Emilia repeated, this time with more force.

"T-the Borg would have taken over the Alpha Quadrant-"

"No." Emilia said sternly. "Right answer, but not the one I was looking for." Then the younger ship pointed at the ship model one step to the left from hers. "The _Enterprise_-D. What would have happened to the ship you keep measuring yourself up against if you'd failed?"

Esther's mouth gaped like a goldfish as understanding came over her features.

A small smirk graced Emilia's features as she moved her finger to point at the next ship step down the line. "And the _Enterprise_-C?" Another step. "Or the _Enterprise_-B?" Another step. "The _Enterprise_-A."

And finally Emilia's finger stopped at the model of the NCC-1701.

"And what of Kirk and his beloved wonder ship? What would have happened them? What would have happened to all of them?" Emilia asked intensely. "Damn girl, if that was just luck that got you through it, then you must be the luckiest starship in the whole damn galaxy. You saved more than just the Federation that time."

Esther cupped her hands against her mouth as she started at the undeniable truth that was before her. Tears returned to her eyes. But not tears of sadness.

"Face it, Lucky E, NONE of this would be here were it not for you."

The undeniable truth that had she not fought that day, had the _Enterprise_-E not decided that 'today is not a good day to die', the legacy that she valued so highly would have been burnt to ash before it could even be realized.

"If there is anyone on that exhibit who has earned the right to bear the name, it's you, Miss _Enterprise._"

* * *

"T-Thank you." Esther said in between sniffles, rubbing her hands against her eyes to wipe away her tears. "Thank you so much."

"Aw, shucks. Now you're making me feel a warm and fuzzy." Emilia groaned. "Man, Admiral Pike would kick my ass if he ever found out I made a cute little thing like you cry."

"I'm… I'm six hundred and eighty five point seven meters long. I'm not little." Esther protested weakly. However the smile on her face did not go away.

"And I'm seven hundred and sixty two. That makes me taller than you." Emilia grinned cheekily, but then the grin disappeared and worry over came it. "Wait, does this make me heavier than you? I never got the tonnage on a _Sovereign_-class ship."

Esther giggled lightly at Emilia's antics. Esther could see it now. Beneath all those rough edges and ill-discipline, Emilia was a true Starfleet officer. The girl seemed to have this 'look before you leap, charge headfirst into the great unknown' attitude that most Starfleet ships didn't have anymore, things that in a different time, helped forge the Federation into the power that it was today.

Something that Esther was beginning to feel that Starfleet should never have lost.

"Thank you." Esther bowed deeply and respectfully, this time covering her gratitude in a way Emilia could not brush off.

"Ah well. You're welcome, Kid." Emilia replied in a motherly tone, a gently smile gracing the young woman's confident features. "Still just remember that being the Enterprise is not just about how many times you save the galaxy and all that. The Captain's oath applies just as much as to us you know."

"I know," Esther said. "To boldly go where no man has gone before."

"Now you're getting it kid! Go out there and make a name for yourself!" Emilia laughed. "Although kid is quite inaccurate since you are technically older than me."

"I don't know about that." Esther said, straightening herself. "I can't explain it, but now that I've gotten to know you, I can't help but feel that you have seniority on me, and that has nothing to do with your experiences and wisdom."

Now it was Emilia's turn to start looking awkward. "Er, well. Yes. I guess I've been giving you some quality advice and all that. So there."

"No really. I feel like I should know you from somewhere." Esther insisted. The feeling in Esther's very core was indescribable. Although the _Enterprise_ was certain that she had never met Emilia before, some primal, instinctive part of the ship insisted that this mysterious stranger who had ghosted into Esther's life was someone was very important. "Are you sure you can't tell me who you are? I promise not to report you for breaking into the museum even if I know your real name."

Emilia squirmed and started fiddling with the collar of her jacket. "Ah-ha-ha. Well y'see. I can't really do that. Prime directive and all that jazz. You know. Section 31 super secrets. Can't say a word!"

"Really?" Esther said incredulously.

"Really." Emilia replied, beads of sweat beginning to form.

"Miss Emilia," the young Vulcan said.

Years later, Emilia would swear on Kirk's memorial that Emilia must have jumped five feet into the air when that voice called out. Walking towards them dressed in casual clothing, was a young Vulcan with a very stoic expression. There was one very peculiar thing about said Vulcan.

Namely, his face was similar to one featured on the portrait in the massive exhibit just around the corner. The one dedicated to one of the Enterprise's most important officers and diplomats.

Younger? Sure, but the resemblance, even in this darkness, was undeniable.

"Miss Emilia, there you are."

"Well, shit. Well cat's out of the bag." Emilia sighed, the put on her best shit eating grin and turned to face the nice young Vulcan that was approaching them. "Ah, Mister Spock. I was wondering when you were going to turn up."

"Miss Emilia, please. Your conduct was very much unbecoming of a starship of your statue. More importantly, the consequences of our discovery here would have terrible ramifications for this Federation and ours," the young Vulcan said with only a hint of admonishment. "And for that matter, please don't converse with the locals. This is a huge breach in protocol, even if she is another star ship."

"Come now, Mister Spock." Emilia rolled her eyes and leaned back against the barrier in a manner very befitting of another member of her crew. "Aren't you the least bit interested about the place where the other Mister Spock came from? He has an entire exhibit dedicated to his biography right over there."

"No," The Vulcan replied. "Furthermore, if I truly wanted to know about his past, even if doing so would be a huge breach of the Temporal Prime Directive, it would be more logical to ask him myself rather than visiting a museum exhibit that only has secondhand information."

Emilia groaned. "Geez, you're no fun."

"In this point of time, Ambassador Spock has not embarked on the mission that stranded him in our reality yet, as evidenced by the fact Romulus still exists." Spock pointed out logically. "As such, we must proceed with all due caution lest we cause unnecessary changes to the timestream."

"Right… how does that work anyway? He's from a version of 'our future', but we're in 'his past'," Emilia started, and then quickly thought better of it. "On second thought, don't explain. The temporal prime directive always gave me headaches. Damn it, I'm a space ship, not a time machine. TARDIS is the time machine. Make this _her_ problem."

"Indeed."

While the Vulcan and the ship were talking, Esther was standing to the side completely motionless. Her face had taken on an unnaturally pale hue, and her eyes were darting between the two figures.

She'd already drawn a conclusion from the available facts.

Now all it was that was left was to believe in aforesaid conclusion.

Easier said than done.

"So what do you think, Mister Spock?" Emilia motioned an arm to the large display before them. "Pretty cool, right?"

Spock merely raised an eyebrow. "There is no guarantee that any of the ships on this display will exist in our timeline, Miss Emilia."

"See what Jim and I have to deal with every day?" Esther rolled her eyes at Esther, the latter at this point who had gone sheet white.

"Please Miss Emilia. I only state the logical conclusion."

"I know that. But it's good to know that this display exists at all. That what we will do… that what we are doing, will matter." Emilia turned to face to Esther wearing an earnest, hopeful smile. "Isn't that right, Lucky E?"

For her part, Esther was too stunned to say anything.

It was outrageous.

It was impossible.

It was insane.

The dimensions of Emilia's real body were all wrong. Her chosen alias was different. She was far, far too young, and yet…

However as much as logic rallied against the idea, the truth that was undeniable.

Esther knew who Emilia was.

"So this is the _Enterprise_-E. Fascinating." To his credit Spock, THE Spock, merely raised an eyebrow at their discovery at the hands of a native. "Even so, this is a significant breach of protocol to speak to another ship of this time, no matter how much she interests you, Miss Emilia."

"Come now Mister Spock. Since when has a strict and literal application of the rules applied on this ship?" Emilia said thumping her chest with a closed fist for emphasis. "Besides, I don't think she'll say anything. Won't you Esther?"

"No one would believe me even if I did," Esther said in awe.

"There you go."

"You are entirely too much like the Captain," Spock said.

"And you still have that stick up your ass. Jeez, you would think beating Khan at a high stakes poker game and bringing Jim from the dead would be enough to get you to loosen up, but nooooooooooo…"

It was then that both Emilia and Spock's communicators have a familiar chirp. Spock flipped his open, god those should have been antiques, and a very recognizable voice sounded from the device.

"Kirk to Spock. Have you found our wayward ship yet? Scotty's getting a little antsy about hiding at the bottom of an ocean again and the TARDIS is bouncing off the walls like out of control tourist. I don't know how much more of this we can take."

"The Doctor and the Ponds are keeping her from going too wild I hope?" Emilia said cheekily.

"Hey Emilia, there you are! Man if I'd known where you were going I'd have been right next to you!" Chirped the unmistakable voice of James Tiberius Kirk. "Well, those three are keeping Taufa in check. But I caught her trying to use the Doc's screwdriver to unfasten the bolts on my chair ten minutes ago. You'd better get back here before she tries to take something else as a souvenir."

"Like the warp core!" Another recognizable voice cut in. "Ah may be a miracle worker, but ah dinnae know of no ship that can fly without ah warp core-GET DOWN FROM THERE!"

"But… the warp core! It's nice and glowly and-"

"Taufa! Behave!"

"But Dooooooocccccc…"

"Man, she's about a billion times more advanced than me, and she's goes goo, goo eyed over a caveman warp core," Emilia laughed in amusement. "But yeah, I got your meaning. Time to go home."

"In that, we are in agreement." Spock nodded.

"Scotty, beam them up." Kirk ordered. "Preferably before that time traveler steals our main power source."

"Well I guess this is goodbye." Emilia said to Esther. "I'd better go before an out of control trekkie time machine steals anything of real importance. Can't fly without a warp core after all."

"Miss Emilia, I…" Esther couldn't find the words. How could she, when she'd just realized that all this time she's been talking to the one person she'd always dreamed of meeting, but knew she never would?

"Oh, c'mon. Don't 'Miss Emilia' me. You're twice as old and ten times the ship I could ever be. Never forget that!" Emilia laughed with that musical voice of hers even as she began to disappear into sparkles of light. The last thing Esther saw before her new friend vanished was Emilia's hand being help up in a traditional Vulcan salute. "Live long, and prosper, _Enterprise_…"

And then Esther was alone.

A few moments of shocked silence followed before the magnitude of what just happened slammed into the _Enterprise_. Esther felt her legs give out from under her as she fell to her knees on the floor. Her eyes went straight to the model display again, this time resting on the model of the first Federation starship to bear the name.

NCC-1701.

The legend.

"That was her. Emilia… was _her_. All along." Esther trembled in awe.

All her life, Esther had dreamed, had fantasized of this meeting. Every ship who had that name, from Ameila to Dorothy, had in shared this one wish. It was a fantasy, one that all of them knew would never happen. But it didn't help every one of them from wanting to meet the greatest, most revered of their number. The first of them to fully realize the legacy under the most honored Captain of her time and went out in a blaze of glory over Genesis, forever burning her legend into the annals of history in fire.

It should have only been just a fantasy.

It was a meeting that would never happen.

But it did.

And not to Amelia, the peacekeeper. Not to Breda, the excellent. Not to Carlin, the brave. Not to Dorothy, the explorer… but to her. Esther.

Lucky E.

Looking at her open palms, hands that had actually touched the woman who was for all intents and purposes, her greatest grandmother, Esther realized something.

For the first time in her life, she felt worthy.

* * *

"Picard to _Enterprise_."

"Go ahead, Captain."

"I know we're all supposed to be on shore leave right now, but I have good news about the android that Mister Data uploaded some of his memory patterns to. If you're willing -"

"I'm on my way, Captain."

* * *

Above the planet Earth, one girl who bore the name '_Enterprise'_ returned to space. Her was future still uncertain, her paths still unclear. However as she returned to the side of her old, yet strong and wise Captain, she did so with renewed hope in her heart and eagerness in her steps.

Far, far away from this, hidden in the oceans of Neptune, another girl who bore that very same name stood at the side of her young captain as she rose from the sea like a rising phoenix and slowly turned her bow to point towards the unknown.

Both girls and their crews were heirs to this vast legacy bequeathed by those that came before, and would come after, them.

One to do honor to the name and birthright she had been bequeathed.

The other, had to forge a new legend worthy of that same respect.

This legacy, both a blessing and a curse, would forever define the lives they would lead.

Neither would have it any other way.

* * *

"Heading, Captain?"

"Actually, in the light of her recent experience… I think our ship should set the course heading this time. Right, Em?"

"Why, thank you very much, Captain. Take us home, Mister Sulu. Maximum warp. Punch it."

"Aye, Aye, Miss _Enterprise_."

* * *

...

Space, the final frontier. These are the voyages of the Starship _Enterprise_…

...

* * *

Notes on the names of the vessels:

Excel (NX/NCC-2000): The slightly nutty lead ship of the Excelsior line, Excel is named after the equally nutty Excel from Excel Saga, because she used to break down all the time under Captain Styles.

Amelia (NCC-1701-A): Named after Amelia Earhart. Also phonetically similar to Emilia, much like how NCC-1701A was a copy of the original NCC-1701. Name means 'hard working'.

Breda (NCC-1701-B): Her names means 'exalted' or 'high one'. As a member of the Excelsior class, she was certainly heads and bounds above all her peers at the time of her commissioning.

Carlin (NCC-1701-C): Name means, among others, 'little champion' and 'the strong courageous one'. Her final battle against the Romulans that was so epic the Klingons saw the Federation in a new light.

Dorothy (NCC-1701-D): Named after Dorothy Gale from the Wizard of Oz, the a small-town girl who went on to have big adventures with her companions in the classic story. Name means 'gift of god'.

Esther Picard (NCC-1701-E): As a Sovereign class starship, she is the pride of the Federation navy and their rising Star. Likely to have many more adventures. Name can mean either 'star', 'myrtle leaf' or 'queen'. Roughly 7+ years old as of 2380. Her looks are patterned after Fate T. Harlown from MGLN.

Emilia Pike (Alternate Reality NCC-1701. No bloody, A, B, C, D or E): Her name means 'to rival, excel, or emulate '… all in all, pretty Enterprising young woman with big dreams and an even bigger heart. Doesn't play by the rules. Just over 3 and half years old, as she is 1.5 years into her first 5 year mission. Her looks are patterned after Hayate Yagami from MGLN.

Taufa (TARDIS): Name basically means 'storm', which is self-explanatory to anyone even with a passing knowledge of what her arrival means for entities of an 'evil disposition'. It turns out, a MAJOR Star Trek fan, much to the Doctor's chagrin.

* * *

Authors Afterword:

There's honestly so much more I could throw into this to cheer up poor Esther, but at over 11500 words, the story if bloated enough as it is. Sure Nemesis was a complete and total wreck and Insurrection was a drummed up TNG episode, but First Contact introduced _Enterprise _E with a big splash. It's a pity her other movie appearances weren't up to par.

I've deliberately kept the extended universe material out, because if that's the case Esther would be a total badass with a mean right hook and not the emotional wreck she is in this one. Novels aside, her video game appearances keep having her going around punching out stuff, which kinda defeats what I was going for in this story.

Anway, that's it for me. Chiao.


End file.
